A federal cabinet minister remained listed as director of a medical supply company for more than a year while it was competing for provincial and municipal contracts, according to business registry documents obtained by Global News.When Boissonnault won back his Edmonton Centre seat and was appointed to cabinet in the fall of 2021, he remained listed as director of GHI in provincial and federal business registries. The company went on to win at least $8.2 million in contracts.
Global Health Imports has lost six lawsuits by default because the company did not put up a defence. In one of the cases, a California-based company accused GHI and Boissonnault’s co-founder Stephen Anderson of committing fraud and wire fraud. Alberta courts have ordered GHI to pay more than $7.8 million to its suppliers and buyers.
“You don’t want to have a federal minister in a position where another government thinks they might be able to curry favour by giving them a contract or giving a contract to their close friend,” he said. “After lengthy inaction by the current sole director, initiated the process himself through his lawyer,” explained Alice Hansen, Boissonnault’s director of communications.
Matt Veres, president of Vereburn Medical Supply, a medical supply distributor based in Calgary that won a default judgment against GHI for $79,600 in July 2023, said Boissonnault’s association with GHI, however distant, left “a sour taste in the mouth.” Anderson, a former hockey coach who took the lead as GHI’s COO, documented a dramatic lifestyle change on his Instagram.
Boissonnault’s office said the minister informed the ethics commissioner that he “stepped down as a director of Global Health Imports in fall of 2021.”When asked if the ethics commissioner was aware that Boissonnault remained listed in business registries as director of a company after joining cabinet, the office’s spokesperson said, due to confidentiality requirements, it “cannot discuss any disclosures a public office holder or member may have made.